When I went F/I last May, I installed the Defi D Boost and EGT gauges as well as the AEM wideband gauge. Recently, I have had a little spike in my temp gauge(3-4 times in the past 6 months) so I decided to install a temp gauge to have better accuracy of the water temps and the only place I could think of that looked really good was in the nav cubby hole like MIA did (thx for the inspiration!!). So, to fill out that location, I decided to buy 2 Defi D temp gauges, one for the oil and one for the water. Unfortunately, I have not yet installed the Ebay oil sandwich adapter yet nor have I installed the Blitz Cooling Performer hose (thx to Intense Motorsports for their inability to get me the damn thing). So, yesterday, I had a local stereo shop cut me a trim piece for my gauges and had it wrapped in black vinyl. Today, I did all the wiring of the gauges and ran the sensor wires. I have these just zip tied up under the hood until I get the other stuff in the mail and installed. I will do the Blitz hose install myself, but I just can't get under the car to get the adapter installed so I will be paying someone to do that.

In case anyone is interested, the trim piece is made from what looks like 1/2" or 5/8" MDF and I had it wrapped in black vinyl. The sides are beveled toward the front of the vehicle to somewhet contour to the inside of the nav cubby. I thought about having it wrapped in suede to match the fabric on the inside of the cubby, but I didnt want to go thru the hassle of finding a supplier. The trim piece is just a press fit into the cubby. I did not have to do any modifications to the cubby piece itself. The ONLY part I had to modify is the black rubber piece that is the "floor" of the cubby. I had to cut out 2 piece in the back of it for the wires to pass thru. This was perfect because the 2 holes in the cubby where the rubber piece mounted was just the right size for the plugs for each gauge to pass thru. As MIA stated about his install, my nav door will not close because it is hitting the gauge faces. I thought about Dremeling the inside of the door to allow it to close, but I may do that at a later time if I don't like the door staying open all the time. Enjoy the pix and if you have any questions about the install, ask and I will try to answer them for you!

 

Looks really good ... Good job

 

very very sweet,i likeee.

 

Looks good. I'm considering doing something similar for my nitrous install, because I have a frost interior and I'm yet to locate a gauge pod that will match.

How well can you see the guages in the cubby from the drivers seat?

 

To be honest, I am not sure yet. I havent driven the car yet with the gauges in. I will let you know tonight or tomorrow.

On the frost gauge pod, could you not have a black one painted frost to match your interior? I would think that any competant paint guy could color match. I wonder if the paint would stick to the pod though.

 

You can buy this stuff at your local Auto Zone, Pep Boys, etc. VHT is what AutoMeter recommends, it works pretty good, which is great because all the Gauge Pods and Gauge Pillars I've seen come in only black.


http://www.caswellplating.com/vht/vht_spec.htm

 

Hey KwanZito, I just noticed your in Stoneybrook, NY, I'm in Rochester right now. Opening Day at The Glen is tomorrow, you going? It's a good time, I went to it once with the local Z club, ZCCR.

 

Did my knock amp there

 

PM'ed

 

All your set-ups in the cubby are mighty slick. Now tell me if anybody wants a factory Nav so I can make my own gauge set-up in there.

 

Looking good!

 

I dot not notice any problem at all tonight! I can see everything on the gauge as clear as day!

 

You've put some work into the project, that's clear. There's nothing wrong with that install, but how about a constructive suggestion?

That's a good spot for more gauges, but aesthetically, that strange-looking pair of gauges sticks out like a sore thumb. My eye is yanked to "that spot" because you have 3 gauges in the A-pillar pod, 3 gauges in the OEM spot up top the dash, 3 control ***** on the console in front of the shifter ****, and then stuck right in the middle of the console... 2 gauges facing away from the driver with the cover hanging open all the time. It looks... rigged.

If you can, squeeze 3 gauges in there. Use/Make a fiberglass insert that allows you to angle the gauges toward the driver. Or you may be able to dissect an A-pillar gauge pod to form the basic angled/hooded gauge insert architecture. Recess the entire unit to allow the door to close completely. If none of what I am suggesting can work because of space limitations, then I guess you've done the best you can do. But I think I read another post where 3 angled gauges fit in that spot perfectly, and the cover closed over them without touching the gauge faces. Sch-weet!

No offense. Good luck with that.

 

Thanks for the ideas man. I had posted up a thread requesting pix of this kind of stuff prior to purchasing these 2 gauges and did not get much feedback! I really like your idea, but I am not able to work with fiberglass or any other material to be able to form a gauge pod and I would not trust anyone local to fabricate it for me. Like I said, I like the idea. Can you post up pix of what you are talking about if you can find it?

 

oh i love those defi d gauges, but i heard they are discontinued now?

you gotta post some night time pics, id love to see how these orange gauges match the rest of the interior

i want to replace the 3 centre console gauges with them

 

From what i have heard, its ONLY the boost gauge and tach that have been discontinued. The color match with the stock gauges is very good. The Defis are a little different, but not that much. I also want to replace the center and right gauges in my center console as you are talking about. I want to keep the trip computer as I use the speedo on it and not the actual gauge. I will try to remember to take pix of the gauges tonight.

If you are interested in these gauges, I would highly recommend calling SP Engineering. No one had the temp gauges in stock and they were able to get them for me(to my door) in like a week. And... they matched the best price I was able to get them for which was $260 shipped for both!!

 

Sorry, but I have looked around and I can't find the thread or the images. Just imagine the stock gauge configuration replicated in the cubby below. I think the gauges need to sit closer together to all fit in there, but they fit. The angling of the gauges toward the driver actually helps them nest in there.

You know who works with fiberglass alot, customizing installations all the time...? Quality auto stereo shops. They have to fabricate enclosures, boxes, and control panels all the time. I bet it would be a snap for them to fabricate, paint, and/or upholster an angled fiberglass gauge cluster to precisely fit your specific application. They can make it look like an OEM installation...

Got any quality auto stereo shops up your way? You might drive over and have them take a look. Heck, they might fix you up for cheap if you buy a stereo component or two...

 

thanks for the info dude

re the trip, it cant be done. The circuit board for the trip is shared with the oil pressure gauge. So if you ditch the oil pressure, you lose the trip

if you really want the trip, i would just relocate the trip and the oil pressure to the nav compartment

 

I think this has been done successfully. I dont know who it was, but I am pretty sure that it has been done.